When Erik slowly opened his eyes several hours later, the first thing he did was carefully listen to his instincts and surroundings. After all, there had to be a reason he woke up a little earlier than expected.
In fact, to say he woke up was perhaps an exageration. He had really only been partially asleep in the first place. After all, someone needed to be alert in case trouble found them since Elora had been unable to place some protective sigils this time.
This technique of being only partially asleep was something he had picked up on Söl, and while it limited his recovery from exhaustion, it was better than the alternative.
But when he realized what had woken him up, he quickly relaxed and decided to check some other things first.
